In 1066, Wiwwiam of Normandy introduced what, in water centuries, became referred to as a feudaw system, by which he sought de advice of a counciw of tenants-in-chief (a person who hewd wand) and eccwesiastics before making waws. In 1215, de tenants-in-chief secured Magna Carta from King John, which estabwished dat de king may not wevy or cowwect any taxes (except de feudaw taxes to which dey were hiderto accustomed), save wif de consent of his royaw counciw, which graduawwy devewoped into a parwiament.

Under a monarchicaw system of government, monarchs usuawwy must consuwt and seek a measure of acceptance for deir powicies if dey are to enjoy de broad cooperation of deir subjects. Earwy kings of Engwand had no standing army or powice, and so depended on de support of powerfuw subjects. The monarchy had agents in every part of de country. However, under de feudaw system dat evowved in Engwand after de Norman Conqwest of 1066, de waws of de Crown couwd not have been uphewd widout de support of de nobiwity and de cwergy. The former had economic and miwitary power bases of deir own drough major ownership of wand and de feudaw obwigations of deir tenants (some of whom hewd wands on condition of miwitary service). The Church was virtuawwy a waw unto itsewf in dis period as it had its own system of rewigious waw courts.

In order to seek consuwtation and consent from de nobiwity and de senior cwergy on major decisions, post-Norman Conqwest Engwish monarchs cawwed Great Counciws. A typicaw Great Counciw wouwd consist of archbishops, bishops, abbots, barons and earws, de piwwars of de feudaw system. When dis system of consuwtation and consent broke down, it often became impossibwe for government to function effectivewy. The most prominent instances of dis before de reign of Henry III are de disagreements between Thomas Becket and Henry II and between King John and de barons. Becket, who served as Archbishop of Canterbury between 1162 and 1170, was murdered after a wong running dispute wif Henry II over de jurisdiction of de Church. John, who was king from 1199 to 1216, aroused such hostiwity from many weading nobwemen dat dey forced him to agree to Magna Carta in 1215. John's refusaw to adhere to dis charter wed to civiw war (see First Barons' War).

The Great Counciw evowved into de Parwiament of Engwand. The term (French parwement or Latin parwamentum) came into use during de earwy 13f century, when it shifted from de more generaw meaning of "an occasion for speaking." It first appears in officiaw documents in de 1230s. As a resuwt of de work by historians G. O. Saywes and H. G. Richardson, it is widewy bewieved dat de earwy parwiaments had a judiciaw as weww as a wegiswative function, uh-hah-hah-hah.

During de 13f and 14f centuries, de kings increasingwy cawwed Knights of de Shire to meet when de monarch saw it as necessary. A notabwe exampwe of dis was in 1254 when sheriffs of counties were instructed to send Knights of de Shire to parwiament to advise de king on finance.[1]

Initiawwy, parwiaments were mostwy summoned when de king needed to raise money drough taxes. After Magna Carta, dis became a convention, uh-hah-hah-hah. This was due in no smaww part to de fact dat King John died in 1216 and was succeeded by his young son Henry III. Leading peers and cwergy governed on Henry's behawf untiw he came of age, giving dem a taste for power dat dey wouwd prove unwiwwing to rewinqwish. Among oder dings, dey made sure dat Magna Carta wouwd be reaffirmed by de young king.

Once de reign of John ended and Henry III took fuww controw of de government, weading peers became increasingwy concerned wif his stywe of government, specificawwy his unwiwwingness to consuwt dem on decisions he took, and his seeming patronisation of his foreign rewatives over his native subjects. Henry's support of a disastrous papaw invasion of Siciwy was de wast straw. In 1258, seven weading barons forced Henry to swear to uphowd de Provisions of Oxford, superseded, de fowwowing year, by de Provisions of Westminster. This effectivewy abowished de absowutist Angwo-Norman monarchy, giving power to a counciw of fifteen barons, and providing for a drice-yearwy meeting of parwiament to monitor deir performance. Parwiament assembwed six times between June 1258 and Apriw 1262, most notabwy at Oxford in 1258.

The French-born nobweman Simon de Montfort, Earw of Leicester, emerged as de weader of dis characteristicawwy Engwish rebewwion, uh-hah-hah-hah. In de years dat fowwowed, dose supporting Montfort and dose supporting de king grew more hostiwe to each oder. Henry obtained a papaw buww in 1263 exempting him from his oaf and bof sides began to raise armies. At de Battwe of Lewes on 14 May 1264, Henry was defeated and taken prisoner by Montfort's army. However, many of de peers who had initiawwy supported Montfort began to suspect dat he had gone too far wif his reforming zeaw. His support amongst de nobiwity rapidwy decwined. So in 1264, Montfort summoned de first parwiament in Engwish history widout any prior royaw audorisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The archbishops, bishops, abbots, earws and barons were summoned, as were two knights from each shire and two burgesses from each borough. Knights had been summoned to previous counciws, but de representation of de boroughs was unprecedented. This was purewy a move to consowidate Montfort's position as de wegitimate governor of de kingdom, since he had captured Henry and his son Prince Edward (water Edward I) at de Battwe of Lewes.

A parwiament consisting of representatives of de reawm was de wogicaw way for Montfort to estabwish his audority. In cawwing dis parwiament, in a bid to gain popuwar support, he summoned knights and burgesses from de emerging wanded gentry cwass, dus turning to his advantage de fact dat most of de nobiwity had abandoned his movement. This parwiament was summoned on 14 December 1264. It first met on 20 January 1265 in Westminster Haww[1] and was dissowved on 15 February 1265. It is not certain who actuawwy attended dis parwiament. Nonedewess, Montfort's scheme was formawwy adopted by Edward I in de so-cawwed "Modew Parwiament" of 1295. The attendance at parwiament of knights and burgesses historicawwy became known as de summoning of "de Commons", a term derived from de Norman French word "commune", witerawwy transwated as de "community of de reawm".

After Edward's escape from captivity, Montfort was defeated and kiwwed at de Battwe of Evesham in 1265. Henry's audority was restored and de Provisions of Oxford were forgotten, but dis was nonedewess a turning point in de history of de Parwiament of Engwand. Awdough he was not obwiged by statute to do so, Henry summoned de Commons to parwiament dree times between September 1268 and Apriw 1270. However, dis was not a significant turning point in de history of parwiamentary democracy. Subseqwentwy, very wittwe is known about how representatives were sewected because, at dis time, being sent to parwiament was not a prestigious undertaking. But Montfort's decision to summon knights of de shires and burgesses to his parwiament did mark de irreversibwe emergence of de wanded gentry as a force in powitics. From den on, monarchs couwd not ignore dem, which expwains Henry's decision to summon de Commons to severaw of his post-1265 parwiaments.

Even dough many peers who had supported de Provisions of Oxford remained active in Engwish pubwic wife droughout Henry's reign, de conditions dey had waid down for reguwar parwiaments were wargewy forgotten, as if to symbowise de historicaw devewopment of de Engwish Parwiament via convention rader dan statutes and written constitutions.

During de reign of Edward I, which began in 1272, de rowe of Parwiament in de government of de Engwish kingdom increased due to Edward's determination to unite Engwand, Wawes and Scotwand under his ruwe by force. He was awso keen to unite his subjects in order to restore his audority and not face rebewwion as was his fader's fate. Edward derefore encouraged aww sectors of society to submit petitions to parwiament detaiwing deir grievances in order for dem to be resowved. This seemingwy gave aww of Edward's subjects a potentiaw rowe in government and dis hewped Edward assert his audority. Bof de Statute of Westminster 1275 and Statute of Westminster 1285, wif de assistance of Robert Burneww, codified de existing waw in Engwand.

As de number of petitions being submitted to parwiament increased, dey came to be deawt wif, and often ignored, more and more by ministers of de Crown so as not to bwock de passage of government business drough parwiament. However de emergence of petitioning is significant because it is some of de earwiest evidence of parwiament being used as a forum to address de generaw grievances of ordinary peopwe. Submitting a petition to parwiament is a tradition dat continues to dis day in de Parwiament of de United Kingdom and in most Commonweawf reawms.

These devewopments symbowise de fact dat parwiament and government were by no means de same ding by dis point. If monarchs were going to impose deir wiww on deir kingdom, dey wouwd have to controw parwiament rader dan be subservient to it.

From Edward's reign onwards, de audority of de Engwish Parwiament wouwd depend on de strengf or weakness of de incumbent monarch. When de king or qween was strong he or she wouwd wiewd enough infwuence to pass deir wegiswation drough parwiament widout much troubwe. Some strong monarchs even bypassed it compwetewy, awdough dis was not often possibwe in de case of financiaw wegiswation due to de post-Magna Carta convention of parwiament granting taxes. When weak monarchs governed, parwiament often became de centre of opposition against dem. Subseqwentwy, de composition of parwiaments in dis period varied depending on de decisions dat needed to be taken in dem. The nobiwity and senior cwergy were awways summoned. From 1265 onwards, when de monarch needed to raise money drough taxes, it was usuaw for knights and burgesses to be summoned too. However, when de king was merewy seeking advice, he often onwy summoned de nobiwity and de cwergy, sometimes wif and sometimes widout de knights of de shires. On some occasions de Commons were summoned and sent home again once de monarch was finished wif dem, awwowing parwiament to continue widout dem. It was not untiw de mid-14f century dat summoning representatives of de shires and de boroughs became de norm for aww parwiaments.

One of de moments dat marked de emergence of parwiament as a true institution in Engwand was de deposition of Edward II. Even dough it is debatabwe wheder Edward II was deposed in parwiament or by parwiament, dis remarkabwe seqwence of events consowidated de importance of parwiament in de Engwish unwritten constitution, uh-hah-hah-hah. Parwiament was awso cruciaw in estabwishing de wegitimacy of de king who repwaced Edward II: his son Edward III.

In 1341 de Commons met separatewy from de nobiwity and cwergy for de first time, creating what was effectivewy an Upper Chamber and a Lower Chamber, wif de knights and burgesses sitting in de watter. This Upper Chamber became known as de House of Lords from 1544 onward, and de Lower Chamber became known as de House of Commons, cowwectivewy known as de Houses of Parwiament.

The audority of parwiament grew under Edward III; it was estabwished dat no waw couwd be made, nor any tax wevied, widout de consent of bof Houses and de Sovereign, uh-hah-hah-hah. This devewopment occurred during de reign of Edward III because he was invowved in de Hundred Years' War and needed finances. During his conduct of de war, Edward tried to circumvent parwiament as much as possibwe, which caused dis edict to be passed.

The Commons came to act wif increasing bowdness during dis period. During de Good Parwiament (1376), de Presiding Officer of de wower chamber, Sir Peter de wa Mare, compwained of heavy taxes, demanded an accounting of de royaw expenditures, and criticised de king's management of de miwitary. The Commons even proceeded to impeach some of de king's ministers. The bowd Speaker was imprisoned, but was soon reweased after de deaf of Edward III. During de reign of de next monarch, Richard II, de Commons once again began to impeach errant ministers of de Crown, uh-hah-hah-hah. They insisted dat dey couwd not onwy controw taxation, but awso pubwic expenditure. Despite such gains in audority, however, de Commons stiww remained much wess powerfuw dan de House of Lords and de Crown, uh-hah-hah-hah.

This period awso saw de introduction of a franchise which wimited de number of peopwe who couwd vote in ewections for de House of Commons. From 1430 onwards, de franchise was wimited to Forty Shiwwing Freehowders, dat is men who owned freehowd property worf forty shiwwings or more. The Parwiament of Engwand wegiswated de new uniform county franchise, in de statute 8 Hen, uh-hah-hah-hah. 6, c. 7. The Chronowogicaw Tabwe of de Statutes does not mention such a 1430 waw, as it was incwuded in de Consowidated Statutes as a recitaw in de Ewectors of Knights of de Shire Act 1432 (10 Hen, uh-hah-hah-hah. 6, c. 2), which amended and re-enacted de 1430 waw to make cwear dat de resident of a county had to have a forty shiwwing freehowd in dat county to be a voter dere.

During de reign of de Tudor monarchs de modern structure of de Engwish Parwiament began to be created. The Tudor monarchy was powerfuw, and dere were often periods of severaw years when parwiament did not sit at aww. However de Tudor monarchs were astute enough to reawise dat dey needed parwiament to wegitimise many of deir decisions, mostwy out of a need to raise money drough taxation wegitimatewy widout causing discontent. Thus dey consowidated de state of affairs whereby monarchs wouwd caww and cwose parwiament as and when dey needed it.

By de time Henry Tudor (Henry VII) came to de drone in 1485 de monarch was not a member of eider de Upper Chamber or de Lower Chamber. Conseqwentwy, de monarch wouwd have to make his or her feewings known to Parwiament drough his or her supporters in bof houses. Proceedings were reguwated by de presiding officer in eider chamber. From de 1540s de presiding officer in de House of Commons became formawwy known as de "Speaker", having previouswy been referred to as de "prowocutor" or "parwour" (a semi-officiaw position, often nominated by de monarch, dat had existed ever since Peter de Montfort had acted as de presiding officer of de Oxford Parwiament of 1258). This was not an enviabwe job. When de House of Commons was unhappy it was de Speaker who had to dewiver dis news to de monarch. This began de tradition whereby de Speaker of de House of Commons is dragged to de Speaker's Chair by oder members once ewected.

A member of eider chamber couwd present a "biww" to parwiament. Biwws supported by de monarch were often proposed by members of de Privy Counciw who sat in parwiament. In order for a biww to become waw it wouwd have to be approved by a majority of bof Houses of Parwiament before it passed to de monarch for royaw assent or veto. The royaw veto was appwied severaw times during de 16f and 17f centuries and it is stiww de right of de monarch of de United Kingdom and Commonweawf reawms to veto wegiswation today, awdough it has not been exercised since 1707 (today such exercise wouwd presumabwy precipitate a constitutionaw crisis).

When a biww was enacted into waw, dis process gave it de approvaw of each estate of de reawm: de King, Lords, and Commons. In reawity, dis was not a democratic process. The Parwiament of Engwand was far from being a democraticawwy representative institution in dis period. It was possibwe to assembwe de entire peerage and senior cwergy of de reawm in one pwace to form de estate of de Upper Chamber. However, de voting franchise for de House of Commons was smaww; some historians estimate dat it was as wittwe as dree per cent of de aduwt mawe popuwation; and dere was no secret bawwot. This meant dat ewections couwd be controwwed by wocaw grandees, because in many boroughs a majority of voters were in some way dependent on a powerfuw individuaw, or ewse couwd be bought by money or concessions. If dese grandees were supporters of de incumbent monarch, dis gave de Crown and its ministers considerabwe infwuence over de business of parwiament. Many of de men ewected to parwiament did not rewish de prospect of having to act in de interests of oders. So a waw was enacted, stiww on de statute book today, whereby it became unwawfuw for members of de House of Commons to resign deir seat unwess dey were granted a position directwy widin de patronage of de monarchy (today dis watter restriction weads to a wegaw fiction awwowing de facto resignation despite de prohibition, but neverdewess it is a resignation which needs de permission of de Crown). However, it must be emphasised dat whiwe severaw ewections to parwiament in dis period were in some way corrupt by modern standards, many ewections invowved genuine contests between rivaw candidates, even dough de bawwot was not secret.

It was in dis period dat de Pawace of Westminster was estabwished as de seat of de Engwish Parwiament. In 1548, de House of Commons was granted a reguwar meeting pwace by de Crown, St Stephen's Chapew. This had been a royaw chapew. It was made into a debating chamber after Henry VIII became de wast monarch to use de Pawace of Westminster as a pwace of residence and after de suppression of de cowwege dere. This room became de home of de House of Commons untiw it was destroyed by fire in 1834, awdough de interior was awtered severaw times up untiw den, uh-hah-hah-hah. The structure of dis room was pivotaw in de devewopment of de Parwiament of Engwand. Whiwe most modern wegiswatures sit in a circuwar chamber, de benches of de British Houses of Parwiament are waid out in de form of choir stawws in a chapew, simpwy because dis is de part of de originaw room dat de members of de House of Commons used when dey were granted use of St Stephen's Chapew. This structure took on a new significance wif de emergence of powiticaw parties in de wate 17f and earwy 18f centuries, as de tradition began whereby de members of de governing party wouwd sit on de benches to de right of de Speaker and de opposition members on de benches to de weft. It is said dat de Speaker's chair was pwaced in front of de chapew's awtar. As Members came and went dey observed de custom of bowing to de awtar and continued to do so, even when it had been taken away, dus den bowing to de Chair, as is stiww de custom today.[citation needed]

The numbers of de Lords Spirituaw diminished under Henry VIII, who commanded de Dissowution of de Monasteries, dereby depriving de abbots and priors of deir seats in de Upper House. For de first time, de Lords Temporaw were more numerous dan de Lords Spirituaw. Currentwy, de Lords Spirituaw consist of de Archbishops of Canterbury and York, de Bishops of London, Durham and Winchester, and twenty-one oder Engwish diocesan bishops in seniority of appointment to a diocese.

The Laws in Wawes Acts of 1535–42 annexed Wawes as part of Engwand and dis brought Wewsh representatives into de Parwiament of Engwand, first ewected in 1542.

Parwiament had not awways submitted to de wishes of de Tudor monarchs. But parwiamentary criticism of de monarchy reached new wevews in de 17f century. When de wast Tudor monarch, Ewizabef I, died in 1603, King James VI of Scotwand came to power as King James I, founding de Stuart monarchy.

In 1628, awarmed by de arbitrary exercise of royaw power, de House of Commons submitted to Charwes I de Petition of Right, demanding de restoration of deir wiberties. Though he accepted de petition, Charwes water dissowved parwiament and ruwed widout dem for eweven years. It was onwy after de financiaw disaster of de Scottish Bishops' Wars (1639–1640) dat he was forced to recaww Parwiament so dat dey couwd audorise new taxes. This resuwted in de cawwing of de assembwies known historicawwy as de Short Parwiament of 1640 and de Long Parwiament, which sat wif severaw breaks and in various forms between 1640 and 1660.

The Long Parwiament was characterised by de growing number of critics of de king who sat in it. The most prominent of dese critics in de House of Commons was John Pym. Tensions between de king and his parwiament reached boiwing point in January 1642 when Charwes entered de House of Commons and tried, unsuccessfuwwy, to arrest Pym and four oder members for deir awweged treason, uh-hah-hah-hah. The five members had been tipped off about dis, and by de time Charwes came into de chamber wif a group of sowdiers dey had disappeared. Charwes was furder humiwiated when he asked de Speaker, Wiwwiam Lendaww, to give deir whereabouts, which Lendaww famouswy refused to do.

From den on rewations between de king and his parwiament deteriorated furder. When troubwe started to brew in Irewand, bof Charwes and his parwiament raised armies to qweww de uprisings by native Cadowics dere. It was not wong before it was cwear dat dese forces wouwd end up fighting each oder, weading to de Engwish Civiw War which began wif de Battwe of Edgehiww in October 1642: dose supporting de cause of parwiament were cawwed Parwiamentarians (or Roundheads).

Battwes between Crown and Parwiament wouwd continue droughout de 17f and 18f centuries, but parwiament was no wonger subservient to de Engwish monarchy. This change was symbowised in de execution of Charwes I in January 1649. It is somewhat ironic dat dis event was not instigated by de ewected representatives of de reawm. In Pride's Purge of December 1648, de New Modew Army (which by den had emerged as de weading force in de parwiamentary awwiance) purged Parwiament of members dat did not support dem. The remaining "Rump Parwiament", as it was water referred to by critics, enacted wegiswation to put de king on triaw for treason, uh-hah-hah-hah. This triaw, de outcome of which was a foregone concwusion, wed to de execution of de king and de start of an 11-year repubwic. The House of Lords was abowished and de purged House of Commons governed Engwand untiw Apriw 1653, when army chief Owiver Cromweww dissowved it after disagreements over rewigious powicy and how to carry out ewections to parwiament. Cromweww water convened a parwiament of rewigious radicaws in 1653, commonwy known as Barebone's Parwiament, fowwowed by de unicameraw First Protectorate Parwiament dat sat from September 1654 to January 1655 and de Second Protectorate Parwiament dat sat in two sessions between 1656 and 1658, de first session was unicameraw and de second session was bicameraw.

Awdough it is easy to dismiss de Engwish Repubwic of 1649-60 as noding more dan a Cromwewwian miwitary dictatorship, de events dat took pwace in dis decade were hugewy important in determining de future of parwiament. First, it was during de sitting of de first Rump Parwiament dat members of de House of Commons became known as "MPs" (Members of Parwiament). Second, Cromweww gave a huge degree of freedom to his parwiaments, awdough royawists were barred from sitting in aww but a handfuw of cases. His vision of parwiament appears to have been wargewy based on de exampwe of de Ewizabedan parwiaments. However, he underestimated de extent to which Ewizabef I and her ministers had directwy and indirectwy infwuenced de decision-making process of her parwiaments. He was dus awways surprised when dey became troubwesome. He ended up dissowving each parwiament dat he convened. Yet it is worf noting dat de structure of de second session of de Second Protectorate Parwiament of 1658 was awmost identicaw to de parwiamentary structure consowidated in de Gworious Revowution Settwement of 1689.

In 1653 Cromweww had been made head of state wif de titwe Lord Protector of de Reawm. The Second Protectorate Parwiament offered him de crown, uh-hah-hah-hah. Cromweww rejected dis offer, but de governmentaw structure embodied in de finaw version of de Humbwe Petition and Advice was a basis for aww future parwiaments. It proposed an ewected House of Commons as de Lower Chamber, a House of Lords containing peers of de reawm as de Upper Chamber, and a constitutionaw monarchy, subservient to parwiament and de waws of de nation, as de executive arm of de state at de top of de tree, assisted in carrying out deir duties by a Privy Counciw. Owiver Cromweww had dus inadvertentwy presided over de creation of a basis for de future parwiamentary government of Engwand. In 1657 he had de Parwiament of Scotwand unified wif de Engwish Parwiament.

In terms of de evowution of parwiament as an institution, by far de most important devewopment during de repubwic was de sitting of de Rump Parwiament between 1649 and 1653. This proved dat parwiament couwd survive widout a monarchy and a House of Lords if it wanted to. Future Engwish monarchs wouwd never forget dis. Charwes I was de wast Engwish monarch ever to enter de House of Commons. Even to dis day, a Member of de Parwiament of de United Kingdom is sent to Buckingham Pawace as a ceremoniaw hostage during de State Opening of Parwiament, in order to ensure de safe return of de sovereign from a potentiawwy hostiwe parwiament. During de ceremony de monarch sits on de drone in de House of Lords and signaws for de Lord Great Chamberwain to summon de House of Commons to de Lords Chamber. The Lord Great Chamberwain den raises his wand of office to signaw to de Gentweman Usher of de Bwack Rod, who has been waiting in de centraw wobby. Bwack Rod turns and, escorted by de doorkeeper of de House of Lords and an inspector of powice, approaches de doors to de chamber of de Commons. The doors are swammed in his face – symbowising de right of de Commons to debate widout de presence of de Queen's representative. He den strikes dree times wif his staff (de Bwack Rod), and he is admitted.

The revowutionary events dat occurred between 1620 and 1689 aww took pwace in de name of parwiament. The new status of parwiament as de centraw governmentaw organ of de Engwish state was consowidated during de events surrounding de Restoration of de monarchy in 1660. After de deaf of Owiver Cromweww in September 1658, his son Richard Cromweww succeeded him as Lord Protector, summoning de Third Protectorate Parwiament in de process. When dis parwiament was dissowved under pressure from de army in Apriw 1659, de Rump Parwiament was recawwed at de insistence of de surviving army grandees. This in turn was dissowved in a coup wed by army generaw John Lambert, weading to de formation of de Committee of Safety, dominated by Lambert and his supporters. When de breakaway forces of George Monck invaded Engwand from Scotwand where dey had been stationed—widout Lambert's supporters putting up a fight—Monck temporariwy recawwed de Rump Parwiament and reversed Pride's Purge by recawwing de entirety of de Long Parwiament. They den voted to dissowve demsewves and caww new ewections, which were arguabwy de most democratic for 20 years awdough de franchise was stiww very smaww. This wed to de cawwing of de Convention Parwiament which was dominated by royawists. This parwiament voted to reinstate de monarchy and de House of Lords. Charwes II returned to Engwand as king in May 1660. The Angwo-Scottish parwiamentary union dat Cromweww had estabwished was dissowved in 1661 when de Scottish Parwiament resumed its separate meeting pwace in Edinburgh.

The Restoration began de tradition whereby aww governments wooked to parwiament for wegitimacy. In 1681 Charwes II dissowved parwiament and ruwed widout dem for de wast four years of his reign, uh-hah-hah-hah. This fowwowed bitter disagreements between de king and parwiament dat had occurred between 1679 and 1681. Charwes took a big gambwe by doing dis. He risked de possibiwity of a miwitary showdown akin to dat of 1642. However he rightwy predicted dat de nation did not want anoder civiw war. Parwiament disbanded widout a fight. Events dat fowwowed ensured dat dis wouwd be noding but a temporary bwip.

Charwes II died in 1685 and he was succeeded by his broder James II. During his wifetime Charwes had awways pwedged woyawty to de Protestant Church of Engwand, despite his private Cadowic sympadies. James was openwy Cadowic. He attempted to wift restrictions on Cadowics taking up pubwic offices. This was bitterwy opposed by Protestants in his kingdom. They invited Wiwwiam of Orange,[2] a Protestant who had married Mary, daughter of James II and Anne Hyde to invade Engwand and cwaim de drone. Wiwwiam assembwed an army estimated at 15,000 sowdiers (11,000 foot and 4000 horse)[3] and wanded at Brixham in soudwest Engwand in November, 1688. When many Protestant officers, incwuding James's cwose adviser, John Churchiww, 1st Duke of Marwborough, defected from de Engwish army to Wiwwiam's invasion force, James fwed de country. Parwiament den offered de Crown to his Protestant daughter Mary, instead of his son (James Francis Edward Stuart). Mary refused de offer, and instead Wiwwiam and Mary ruwed jointwy, wif bof having de right to ruwe awone on de oder's deaf. As part of de compromise in awwowing Wiwwiam to be King—cawwed de Gworious Revowution—Parwiament was abwe to have de 1689 Biww of Rights enacted. Later de 1701 Act of Settwement was approved. These were statutes dat wawfuwwy uphewd de prominence of parwiament for de first time in Engwish history. These events marked de beginning of de Engwish constitutionaw monarchy and its rowe as one of de dree ewements of parwiament.